Bromance
by redmoon3
Summary: This is a story about Sodapop and Ponyboy. They are not related. This is manly a story about their friendship. It's a bromance fic xD
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** Well, this is the first chapter of the story. I hope you enjoy it. I wrote this at 12 in the morning so I don't know how well it turned out.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders.

**Warning:** Mm. Only that my grammar stinks. Also at some times this may seem like slash, but it's not. It's just a bromance :'D. Oh, and it might be out of character.

_blahblah_-Thoughts

"blahblah"-Talking

**Side Note:** I am not sure when I will be able to update this story since I am pretty busy with school and work. Sorry! Also, tbh, I think that this will more than likely be the longest chapter of the story since it is about how they met.

* * *

Ponyboy walked along the streets of Tulsa looking at everything and enjoying the little walk his parents prompted him to take. Since him and his parents just moved to the town he was trying to familiarize himself with the neighborhood they were going to live in. So far there wasn't really anything particularly interesting about it.

Seeing a gas station up ahead he paused in his walk for a minute and debated on whether or not to go buy something to snack on. Deciding he did feel a little hungry he started his way towards the gas station he could now see was called the DX.

Stopping outside the door he couldn't help but feel a little nervous about going in. Frowning he couldn't see what would make him nervous about going into a gas station; he had done it all the time back home. _Relax_; he thought to himself, _it's just a gas station_.

Rolling his eyes at how ridiculous he was being he opened the door and walked in. Even though he had decided not to be nervous or anything, he was secretly relieved when he saw that no one else seemed to be in the station, not even the cashier, at the moment.

Feeling a little more confident about being in the unfamiliar place, that is the DX, he walked through the isles tying to decide what he wanted to get. Standing in the front of the shelf with all the chips on them he was trying to decide which kind he wanted. He was so busy doing that that he didn't notice someone, the cashier, had seen him and come over.

"Need any help?" Ponyboy suddenly heard a voice ask out of nowhere.

Ponyboy jumped in surprise and turned around to face the person that was behind him. Once he had fully turned around he came face to face, with a young handsome teen-aged boy with longish blond hair, that looked greased, and brown eyes, that at the moment were lit with amusement (Guess who... xD).

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He said, but he didn't look very sorry in Ponyboy's opinion.

"I wasn't scared." Ponyboy said indignantly. After saying that he decided to ignore the boy and was about to turn back around, but stopped when he could practically hear his mom's voice in his head, _"You mind your manner, ya hear?"_ Inwardly groaning he looked at the boy and after a light cough, added softly, "no thank you."

Suddenly the amusement left Sodapop's eyes and curiosity replaced it. All of a sudden Sodapop leaned in closer to Ponyboy's face, too close for Ponyboy's liking. While Sodapop leaned towards him Ponyboy unconsciously leaned away from him watching him warily.

Either not noticing or not choosing to ignore Pony's discomfort he continued to stare at him intently. Finally after what seemed like forever or at least to Pony it did, Soda stood straight again. Smiling widely Soda spoke "You're new around here, aren't you?"

Dumbfounded that he had figured it out so quickly his mouth fell open, but no sound came out of his mouth. Closing it, he didn't answer for a moment.

"Umm, yeah, I am." He said softly, "How'd you know?" He added, curiously.

"I just had a feeling." He said with a slight shrug.

"Oh."Was all Ponyboy said.

"Anyway, I'm Sodapop. What's your name?" He said with that big smile of his, stretching his arm out for a handshake.

Pony just stared at him for a moment, then looked up at his face, and saw the expectant look on his face. Inwardly sighing, he decided it would be nice to have at least one person that he knew. Slipping his hand into Soda's awaiting one he gave it a firm handshake while introducing himself, "Ponyboy" He replied.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Ponyboy." Soda said, and Pony just nodded his head in response; a "same here" gesture.

"Well, I better go; my parents must be worrying about me." Pony said. Noticing his hand was still in Soda's he stared at him, he tilted his head slightly before tugging his hand.

Feeling the light tug Soda blinked in surprise and saw he was still holding hands. He didn't even realize he hadn't let go. "Ahh." Was all he said, and chuckled a little while letting go.

"Well, see ya later, Sodapop." Pony said with a timid smile.

It having been the first kind of smile that Pony had offered, Soda was glad to return it, "Yeah, see you later."

Turning around Pony was about to walk away when Soda spoke again, "weren't you going to get something?"

"Oh, right." Pony mumbled a little embarrassed at having forgotten why he came in in the first place.

Grabbing some potato chips he followed Soda to the counter and after a moment decided to get a soda as well. Coming back from getting it he waited patiently for Sodapop to ring it up.

After paying and one final wave to his new "friend" he left the DX. He didn't really think of Soda as a friend just yet, after all they had just met. He smiled a little though because he had a feeling that they would become good friends.

Eating the chips and finishing his drink he continued to walk around. Having walked around for a good part of the morning and afternoon he decided to head back home to see how the moving in was going.

Walking along the side of the road his head was in the clouds and so he didn't notice that Soda was a little up ahead.

Having gotten out of work already Soda was on his way home. He stopped walking when he suddenly got the feeling that he should. A few seconds after he had stopped he felt something hit his back making take a step forward, and he heard a soft gasp.

"Oww…" Pony trailed off when he saw that he had bumped into someone, not just anyone, it was Sodapop.

"Ahh. Sorry!" He quickly apologized, feeling his face turn a little red for having done that.

Turning around at the sound of the familiar voice Soda smiled at Ponyboy, "It's ok, it was an accident." He said reassuringly.

Pony relaxed when he saw that Soda wasn't mad. "You're done working?" He asked, curiously.

"Yup! Just got off a few minutes ago." Soda responded, while starting to walk towards home. Pony unconsciously walked alongside him. Talking the whole way to his house Soda got a little worried. They had been so distracted while talking that they hadn't realized that they had walked all the way to Soda's house.

Pony saw the house they stood in front of and looked to the left of that house. Suddenly Pony got tense, _Does he know that's my house_? He thought to himself stiffly. He was about to open his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Soda.

"Where do you live, Ponyboy? I will walk you home." Soda said with a smile. He didn't want Pony to walk home alone. It could be dangerous.

Blinking, Pony stared at Soda for a moment. Without speaking he pointed to the house that was to the left of the house that they now stood in front of. Surprise showed on Soda's face, and then he smiled a little, "So, we're neighbors?" He questioned.

"Looks like it." Pony responded with a small smile of his own.

"Ponyboy! Come here and help me take this table in!" Pony heard his dad call to him from their driveway where there car was parked. He was surprised his dad had seen him so quickly since he had just gotten here. _He must have been outside._

"Coming, dad!" He called back.

"Well, I guess I will see you later." He said, smiling as he said it, having a sense of déjà vu.

Chuckling a little Soda responded the same way he did earlier. "Yeah, see ya later."

Walking towards their driveway Pony went over to help his dad. When Pony walked away Soda walked into his house, "I'm home!" He called out so that his parents and his brother would know.

"Welcome home, honey." His mom said, smiling.

He smiled back. "Thanks mom."

"How was work, son?" He heard his dad ask from… Somewhere.

Looking around confused he responded sounding as confused as he looked, "it was alright."

"He's in our room." Darry, his brother said, answering his unasked question.

"Oh." He said.

"Now," their mom started, "who wants to take this cake over to the new neighbors?"

He was going to volunteer, but Darry beat him to it, "I'll do it. I don't have anything else to do."

"I'll go too." Soda said, with a smile.

"Alright, you boys go ahead, and make sure to invite them over to dinner for tomorrow night." She said.

"Ok, mom." They replied simultaneously.

Walking out of the house Darry spoke, "You seemed pretty eager to go over there. Any particular reason why?"

Smiling Soda shrugged, and didn't respond. Not talking anymore then that they walked the rest of the way in silence.

Soda seeing that no one was outside anymore decided it was safe to assume that they had finished taking everything into the house.

Stopping at the door Darry knocked three times and they waited patiently for someone to open the door. When the door opened it was a woman that answered. Soda was a little disappointed that it wasn't Pony that had answered the door, but he smiled all the same.

"Hi. We're your neighbors. Our mom made this cake for you as a welcoming gift." Darry said, getting right to the point, making Soda stare at him.

"Oh! How lovely! Thank you very much for bringing it over, and please thank your mother for being so considerate." The woman said, with a big smile, though her voice was soft.

Soda was slightly taken aback by the woman. He guessed this was pony's mom, but their personalities were just too different. She seemed to be an outgoing person, while Pony seemed to be more quiet, reserved, and a little spacey. _Must get it from his dad_, he thought to himself.

"Our mom also wanted us to invite your family over for dinner tomorrow night." Soda added, smiling.

"That sounds like a very nice idea. Tell her we will definitely go." She said softly.

Nodding they turned to leave, but not before Soda glanced into the house curiously. (Wow, lot's of curiosity in this chapter xD).

"They said they would come to dinner mom, and also said thanks for your consideration!" Soda said once he and Darry were in the house.

"Alright. Thank you, both." She said back.

Later, when it was night time, Soda was unable to sleep and so went outside for a little air. Stepping out into the porch he was careful not to let the door slam behind him. Sitting on the top step Soda stared up at the sky and couldn't help but find it beautiful. The stars were shining brightly, the moon was full, and the sky was a nice mix of dark blue, and black. Smiling at how peaceful everything was he started to feel sleepy; the lull of the chirping crickets lulling him to sleep.

Standing up he stretched, and gave the sky one last look. When he turned around something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. Looking to his left he saw that it seemed Ponyboy had had the same idea as him.

Going over to the fence that separated the 2 of their houses Soda leaned against it, "Nice night. Huh?" He commented.

Pony, not expecting anyone to be out or up for that matter, flinched as the quietness of the night was disturbed. Having heard the question, however, he answered it despite the shock, "Beautiful." He said.

"How do you like Tulsa so far?" Soda asked suddenly.

Pony didn't want to be rude or anything so just said, "It's nice."

Soda chuckled, "Translation, boring, right?"

Pony couldn't help but smile at that. Not a small smile, but a full smile that made his eyes light up.

Soda stared at him amazed. Pony, he decided, had a really nice smile. He would have to make him smile like that more often. With that in mind he, himself, smiled a full smile too.

"Hey, Sodapop is there a theater around here?" He Pony asked seemingly out of nowhere, "I didn't see one."

He was a little confused at the question, since thy hadn't even been talking about anything close to theaters or movies. He replied nonetheless "Yeah, it's…"Soda trailed off, and just stared at Pony for a moment. He wasn't the best person to ask when it came to direction.

Seeing that Pony was staring at him expectantly he continued, "Actually me and some friends were going go to the movies tomorrow. You can come with us if you like." He suggested.

He was about to agree, but then thought about it a little more, "I dunno..." He trailed off tentatively. He had always been a little shy/timid when it came to meeting new people.

Knowing the exact reason for his hesitance, Soda was quick to reassure him, "Don't worry. They're good guys." He said.

Still a little hesitant he tried to think of some kind of excuse as to why he couldn't. He thought a little lie wouldn't hurt, but the only problem with that was, he couldn't lie to save his life.

Seeing no way out of it, and not wanting to say no to Soda being helpful he finally agreed. "Ok. That would be nice."

"Alright then I'll see you tomorrow." Soda chirped happily.

Standing up, Pony nodded, and went to go inside "Night, Sodapop." He said softly.

"Night, Ponyboy." He replied.

Going into the house Ponyboy quietly walked into the house and into his room. Getting into bed he stared up at the ceiling thinking about tomorrow. It would be nice to do something other than staying home, and it wouldn't have been a lot of fun going to the movies alone so he guessed it wouldn't be too bad. He was still nervous about meeting Sodapop's friends, but he said they were good guys so it should be ok. Finally sleep took him over and he fell into a dreamless sleep.

In the house next door, the Curtis home, Sodapop was also thinking about tomorrow and how Pony was going to meet the gang. He was just as nervous about Pony meeting the gang as Pony was. He would have to talk to the guys about him tomorrow, make sure they try to act, not so tough.

With that thought in mind he fell asleep.

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Thank you very much for reading my story, and I hope you enjoyed it! ^_^


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** This chapter took forever to make! Sorry! I don't know how well this chapter came out, but I hope you enjoy the chapter anyway :'D

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders.

**Warning:** Mm. Only that my grammar stinks. Also at some times this may seem like slash, but it's not. It's just a bromance :'D. Oh, and it might be out of character.

**Another Note:** Also! Sorry about the spelling. I did not use microsoft or anything because I do not have it on my new computer yet D8

_blahblah_-Thoughts

"blahblah"-Talking

**Side Note:** I am not sure when I will be able to update this story seeing as school is starting soon. Sorry T_T

**I can't think of a last name for Ponyboy D8! Any ideas? :'D**

* * *

Morning came and Ponyboy was already up and getting ready for his first day at his new school. _I've lived here half a day and I'm already going to school_, he thought to himself, _isn't there some kind of rule about this kind of thing? Guess not._

When he was finished getting ready he left his room and walked to the breakfast table. He saw that his dad wasn't there and blinked in confusion, "Where's dad?" He asked.

"He left for work already, sweetheart." She replied from the kitchen, where she was preparing his breakfast.

_Looks like dad didn't waste any time in starting to work either, _He mused.

"Here's your breakfast." She chirped happily. Inwardly cringing at how cheerful she was in the morning he took the offered plate.

"Thanks, mom." He mumbled, and was about to turn when suddenly she blew some hair out of her face and put her hands on her hips.

"Honestly, you're ecoming more and more like your father everyday." She said, trying (and failing) to sound exasperated. The whole effect was ruined by the fond smile playing on her lips.

Ponyboy smiled at that and bowed playfully before amending his earlier response, "Oh, thank you kind mother for the food." He said,sounding more appreciative.

His mother left out a soft giggle and cupped his face lovingly and said, "that's more like it."

When she removed her hand she straightened and smiled that fond smile she always seemed to get when she spoke of me or dad, "You really are just like him. He gave me almost the exact the response as you." Then she ushered him over to the table before speaking again, "Now! Get to eating, you don't want to be late for your first day of school."

"Do I really have to go to school?" He complained a little while sitting down in a chair, "we just moved in yesterday!"

"It's never too early to start school." She practically sang.

Sighing, Ponyboy ate his breakfast in silence, thinking about what school would be like. Too caught up in his thought he didn't notice h had already finished eating. Cleaning up the table he took his dirty dishes into the kitchen where his mom was washing the other dirty dishes.

"Oh, you're done!" His mom said, taking the dishes from his hands and drying her own hands on her apron.

"Get a move on, Ponyboy." She said, as she ushered him to th door. Onc sh opned th door she turnd to face him. Noticing that his clothes were a little on the messy side she went about straightening them. He just stared at her silently, she hadn't done that since the last time he started his first day of school.

After standing there, letting her adjust his clothes, for five minutes he finally moved away from her, "thanks, mom. I think I'm ready to go now." He said.

"Right!" She said, sounding like she was about to start crying any minute, but before she had a chance to she "shoo'd" him out the door, "Have a good day, sweety." She coo'd softly.

As he walked down the path that lead to the sidewalk he waved to his mom. Turning back to face forward he came face to face with Sodapop, who seemed to be trying to fight a smile and failing.

Feeling his face heat up a little Ponyboy scowled, "What?"

"Nothing," Soda started, "your mom just reminds me of mine."

Ponyboy thought about that for a second, _must get his personality from his mom,_ he thought to himself.

"Oh." Was what he said outloud, and absently started to walk towards school.

Turning his attention to Soda's clothes he was confused to see Soda in his work uniform, "You're not going to school Sodapop?" He asked curiously. He was sure Soda wasn't old enough to have already graduated. _Maybe he graduated early._

"Oh... I don't go to school anymore." He said, souding a little uncrtain of himself.

Sensing Sodapop's uncertainty Pony didn't say anything else, not wanting to pry.

Coming up to the DX Sodapop said his goodbye and Ponynoy waved to him as he walked away. With Sodapop not there there was nothing to distract him fom his worries. It may not look like it but he was very uneasy about starting school.

He stopped for a couple of minutes. It's not like it mattered whether he went in late or not. He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice 4 greasers walking by him, at least not until one of them accidently bumped into him. He turned around quickly to apologize but stopped when he was met with 4 people. One person was glaring at him, another was staring at him blankly, the third curiously, and the last timidly.

Seeing as the one staring at him timidly was the closest to him he assumed that was who had bumped into him. Since it was partly his fault for just standing around spacing out he offered an apology, "Sorry. I shouldn't have been standing in the middle of the sidewalk."

He was tacken aback by the blank looks that all of them were giving him. Judging from their looks they couldn't have been that much older than himself, the oldest looked about 3 years older then him. Feeling uncomfortable with their stares he moved to the side a little so that he could walk around them, "Well, I'd better go, bye. Sorry again." He said as he walked around them cautiously.

After walking away from them he quickened his pace when he felt their stares practically burning into his back. Looking over his shoulder he slowed down when he didn't see them standing where he left them.

_What was that all about? Probably nothing._

He jumped when his watch beeped, signaling that school had already started. Oh well. The walk doesn't take long but since he was walking slowly at first and spaced out for a while he got to school later than he though he would.

Finally arriving at school he walked up the steps slowly and walked down the hall to the main office. Going into the office he got his schedule and proceeded to get lost getting to his first class. Looking left and right he inwardly groaned when he ended up at the end of another hallway and neither hall held his class. He trudged up the stairs, not looking where he was going; which resulted in him bumping into someone._ Today just isn't my day_.

"I'm sorry." I apologized quickly, keeping my gaze on the ground.

When the person chuckled he looked to see who it was. It was a curly haired boy with a letterman jacket on. Must be a jock. "I'm sorry." Ponyboy repeated.

The guy just waved his hand as if dismissing the apology, "It's no big deal. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." He said.

With a nod Ponyboy went to walk passed him then stopped, " Oh, right. Can you tell me where I can find my class?" He asked, then added, " I'm new."

The boy hummed softly, taking Ponyboy's schedule out fo his hand. Looking at it he told him how to get to it. When he finished giving the directions Ponyboy thanked and he went the way he was told and sure enough the class was right there. It was a relief to not be lost anymore. He took a moment to gather his courage before knocking on the door. Waiting for acknowlegment he opened the door once someone inside told him to go in.

He noticed immediately that everyone stopped what they were doing and were now staring at him. He could feel his face turn redder by the second as he walked to the teacher's desk. The teacher talked to him for a moment and gave him a book, telling him to sit in the empty seat near the back.

Sitting down he glanced around the room to see everyone had gone back to doing what they were doing. He was about to start reading the book to the assigned reading when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. Turning to look he saw it was the boy from earlier, the one that had bumped into him. When the boy turned he quickly looked away.

"Sorry about earlier." He heard the boy whisper.

" Ahh no. It's ok..." He trailed off.

"I'm Johnny by the way." Johnny introduced himself.

"I'm Ponyboy." He said quietly.

With the introductions out of the way they went back to doing their work. At the end of the class Pony asked for help finding his next class. Johnny looked at the schdule then back up at Ponyboy. As it turned out they had all but one class together.

Relieved he smiled a little and walked with Johnny to their next class. The rest of the classses went by a blur for Ponyboy and before he knew it it was time for lunch. Having been invited by Johnny to eat lunch together he followed him to the cafeteria. He was a little confused when they walked out of the school he was a little tentative. He slowed down his pace a little when he saw the 3 other guys from earlier that day.

Grimacing a little he stopped a little behind Johnny and just stood there, not sure of what else to do. "Hey guys. This is Ponyboy. Ponyboy these are my buddies, Steve, Dallas, and Twobit. His real name is Keith, but everyone calls him twobit." Johnny said, making Ponyboy stare at him. From how quiet he seemed to be Pony was surprised at how much he had said.

"Hi." Ponyboy said, awkwardly.

The only person that really greeted him was Two-Bit with a big "hello". The other two just nodded their heads a little. With that out of the way they started to walk in the direction that his house was in. "Hey, Johnny. Where are we going?" Pony questioned quietly.

"The DX." Was the reply.

"Oh."

When they reached the DX he saw that Soda was outside near the gas pumps. Reaching where he was Pony watched as Steve pulled him into a head lock and they mock fought for a little bit. Getting bored Dally finaly pulled them apart and asked for a smoke.

Turning to look at Dally Soda's eyes caught sight of someone familiar. His eyes lit up when he saw Ponyboy, "Hey, Ponyboy!" He said, excitedly.

All eyes were on him, again. "...Hi." He said.

Pony now knew the whole gang and for that Soda was both relieved and dissappointed. He was relieved because he didn't have to worry about introducing them anymore, and dissappointed because he had been looking forward to seeing them all meet.

"You guys already know each other?" Steve asked and Pony nodded, but Soda decided to answer out loud.

"Yup! We met yesterday." Walking over to Pony he wrapped his arm around his shoulders, "He's going with us to the movies tonight after dinner." He added.

Feelig more comfortable with Soda's precense he leaned against him a little. He didn't care that the other's were looking at him, since it seemed like _anything_ he did caught their attention.

The rest of lunch was spent talking about what movie they should watch and what they would do after the movie, the response being that they would all go to the Curtis house to hang out and or to decide what else to do.

Since lunch was going to be over soon they all bid Sodapop a "see ya later" and left, except for Ponyboy whom Soda asked to stay for a bit longer. He was hesitant at first but stayed anyway because it was Soda that asked.

Pony shoo'd Johnny away when he said he would stay behind. He didn't want him to get into trouble. He quickly assured Johnny that he would be fine walking back alone and not to worry. Noting his reluctance Pony put his hand to Johnny's back and gave a little push.

"I'll meet you after school." Pony said, since Johnny wasn't in his last class of the day. With a nod Johnny left, running to catch up to the other guys who were waiting for him a little up a head.

Feeling something cold touch his neck Pony jumped a little and whipped around to see what it was. What he saw was Soda holding a Coke close to his face a big grin on his face. Confused he just looked at the drink.

"For you." Soda offered, grin turning into a smile.

"Ah, thanks." He murmmered, taking the offered drink.

"So, you met the guys, huh?" He said.

"Yeah... They're nice." Pony answered, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Yup, told you they were." Soda said, proudly.

They talked for a but more before Pony figured it was time to go. Lunch ended, and to get to school on time he knew he had to run. With a "later" he turn and ran as fast as he could to get to school. When he got there he ran up the stairs and walked down the hall quickly.

Luckly he was able to find his classroom without any help. Basically he did everything he had done for the first class, knocked, waited, talked to the teacher, and then took the empty seat. Not bothering to pay attention he didn't notice that he was sitting beside someone familiar, but the person had been staring at him since he walked in.

"Hey!" Pony heard a familiar male voice, making him flinch as the silence was unexpectedly broken.

Looking to his right he saw the boy he had bumped into earlier, " ...Hey..." He, trailed off.

"Bob." The guy supplied, "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you." Pony echoed.

Since there was really no work for them to do that day the two of them talked. Ponyboy was surprised at how easy it was to talk to Bob; it felt as if he were talking to Sodapop. They were both nice, he decided.

"I saw you running to school," Bob started, "you run realy fast. Ever think about going out for track?"

Blinking, Pony nodded, "I was on the track team at my old school, and I was thinking about joining the track team here."

"I'm also on the track team. We should get together for a run sometime." Bob said with a smile.

"Yeah, we should." Pony agreed.

With that class ended and everyone got up to leave. "We don't have practice today, but if you want you can come with me to practice tomorrow."

"Ok, see you tomorrow." Pony said, offering a small smile.

"See you." Bob replied, returning the smile.

Going their seperate ways Pony went to the front of the school and waited for Johnny, and he assumed the other guys as well. When he talked with Soda he had been told that they all live around the neighborhood too.

"Ready to go Ponyboy?" He heard Johnny ask from behind him.

"Yeah." He replied, turning around and walking with the guys.

Before going home they walked to the DX again because Steve had to work and Soda got off. A small exchange later they were walking away," Don't forget about the movies tonight!" Soda called over his shoulder at Steve. Steve just waved his hand indicating that he had heard him.

The walk home was filled with mock fights, greeting people and introducing himself. He met a lot of people and had already forgotten half the people that he had met.

As the walk progressed one by one the other guys bid them a "See ya later" until it was just Sodapop and Ponyboy walking alone.

"So, how was it?" Soda asked, cursiously.

"How was what?" Pony questioned, confused.

"School, of course." Was Soda's reply.

"Oh... It was ok. It was more interesting then I thought it would be." Pony answered, honestly.

"That's good." Soda said, soudning pleased.

Silence enveloped them the rest of the way home, which Pony welcomed happily. He had gotten tired of all the noise at school and was pleased to finally have some peace and quiet. He did like listening to Soda's voice though and so broke th silence, "What time are we going to the movies, tonight?"

_He's making it sound like a date_, Soda chuckled a little, "After dinner when the guys get to the house."

"Oh." He said, as they stood in fron of his house.

"See you at dinner!" Soda all but chirped at Pony.

"See you tonight." Pony replied.

Walking into their houses they both set about getting things ready for dinner that night.

* * *

This chapter was supposed to be about the dinner and the gang meeting, but I decided to make it about his first day of school and meeting the gang, plus meeting Bob since he will also be in this story a lot.

**Side Note: **In this story Bob is going to be nicer. I remember Cherry saying something about Bob only being a jerk when he drank... or something like that. Also, Steve is going to be more indifferent towards Ponyboy instead of a jerk.

**A Special Thanks To: Wilted Violet, TheNightimeSky, rinswan, minato4ever, Tim's Princess, xCupcakiesX, and DarkxNightxStar.**

I would also like to thank everyone that put me on their favorite author list, who favorited this story and put it on their alert.

Lot's of Love,

Laura

**BTW, Wilted Violet**: Yes, this is totally a bromance, no slash (\(^_^)b

**Pisces3:** Hehe, Thank you for correcting me. I haven't read the book/saw the movie in a while so i kind of forgot Two-Bits real name. All I could remember was that Mathew was in his name somewhere xD. Anyway, I corrected it. :'D


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** Yay! I'm back! Honestly, I think this chapter is pretty boring but eh. I really wanted to put something up. I hope you enjoy it, at least a little xD.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders.

**Warning:** Mm. Only that my grammar stinks. Also at some times this may seem like slash, but it's not. It's just a bromance :'D. Oh, and it might be out of character.

**Another Note:** Also! Sorry about the spelling. I did not use microsoft or anything because I do not have it on my computer. lol, can you believe I still don't have it? I got this computer like months ago, Haha.

_blahblah_-Thoughts

"blahblah"-Talking

* * *

When the time to be over at the Curtis's finally arrived Ponyboy and his father(Drake) were sitting on the couch, both ready to go, watching Elaine(Ponyboy's mother) finish getting ready.

"Do I look ok?" She asked but didn't really wait for a response before she started fussing about how her shoes didn't match her dress all that well and that maybe she should change them.

Ponyboy spoke up. "Mom, relax. It's just dinner."

She sent him a look of disbelief. "It's not just dinner! It's dinner with out neighbors. People we will be seeing for who knows how long. We have to make a good impression. It would be nice if we could be friends. We could have double dates and all that fun stuff." She got a dreamy look in her eyes.

Ponyboy blinked just now thinking about his parents. Where they used to live they didn't really go out often, then again he was still too young to stay alone. He also didn't really have any close friends either so he didn't really have anywhere to stay. Now that he thought about it the three of them were always together. This would be a great chance for them to finally have some fun. He had to admit he wasn't much fun when he was growing up, being shy and quiet it was difficult to have fun sometimes. Thankfully all that had faded and he was able to enjoy a lot of things. When he joined the track team in his old school he had made a lot of friends and even had some close friends that he had promised to write to often.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard his mom give a frustrated sigh and mutter something about putting on different shoes, again.

Drake's next words stopped her in her tracks. "You look good, darling." He drawled out, a light smile playing on his lips.

Beaming at the praise she laughed lightly and suggested they leave before they were late.

"They live next door, mom. I'm sure we won't be late." Ponyboy assured, absently wondering how one complement from his dad was able to lift his mom's confidence so fast. _That's the power of love, I guess_. He mused.

Standing up he stretched his arms lazily before following his parents out the door. His mom reminded him to be polite and mind his manners, as if he didn't know how to act around new people. It was ok though because he knew she only ever did this when she was nervous. _She really wants to get along well with them._ He thought to himself.

They reached the door and no one moved. He waited for one of his parents to do it but neither one of them did. Getting tired of waiting he moved passed them and knocked on the door himself, lifting his hands in defense when they both glared at him.

His mom started panicking a little. "I'm not ready yet!" She said, keeping her voice low. However when the door started opening she quickly regained her her composure and a smile overtook her lips.

"Hello!" A woman's voice was heard. "Please come in." As they were ushered in Ponyboy got a good look at her and was surprised to see that she resembled Soda very much. His mom, he presumed.

"Thank you for inviting us to dinner." Elaine smiled. "I hope it's alright that I baked a cake for dessert." _Honestly, I only baked it because I was nervous_. She thought to herself and laughed a little.

"That's perfect." Soda's mom chirped. "I was so busy preparing everything that I lost track of time and didn't have time to make some dessert. By the way my name is Mary."

"Oh! Nice to meet you." Elaine said. "How rude of me; let me introduce everyone. This is my husband Drake, I'm Elaine, and this is our son-" She didn't get to finish as Mary spoke up.

"Let me guess; this is Ponyboy." She said with a bright smile. Seeing their confused looks she laughed lightly. "Sodapop has talked about you non-stop for the past 2 days."

"Really?" He asked, unsure whether to feel embarrassed or flattered that someone was happy to know him.

Smiling, Mary nodded her head and ushered them further into the small house. "Darrel, Darry, Sodapop! Our guests are here!" She called into the house.

"Already?" Soda called back.

"This is the time we were supposed to be here, right?" Elaine asked a little worried.

Mary smiled a reassuring smile and answered. "Yes, it is. It's just they have no sense of time." She rolled her eyes. "If I weren't around I wouldn't be surprised if it turned from day to night and they never even noticed."

As they laughed and talked together they seemed to have forgotten that Ponyboy and Drake were behind them. Ponyboy smiled a little, pleased to see that Soda's and his mom were getting along so well.

Then a man came out of one of the back rooms, he was kinda muscled and a good 2 ft taller then Mary was. _He must be Soda's dad_, Pony mused.

Mary noticed that he had stood behind her and smiled and introduced us all to each other. "This is my husband Darrel. Honey, this is Elaine, her husband Drake, and Ponyboy."

He shook all of our hands and stared at Ponyboy for an extra long time. "_The_ Ponyboy? The one our son never shuts up about?" He asked, amusement and fondness in his voice as he spoke about Soda.

"The very same." She confirmed.

Our parents chatted for a bit before Mr. Curtis said he had to go check a problem his car had, while it was still light out. Dad being one to always lend a hand offered to help and Mr. Curtis accepted his offer.

It looked like they would get along well too. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice that Mrs. Curtis was trying to get his attention; well, he didn't notice until his mom smacked him upside the head, not hard enough to hurt but hard enough to snap him out of his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, what?" He said.

Mary laughed then smiled. "I said, the boys are in their room if you want to-" She was cut off by the boys coming out of a room, their room Ponyboy presumed.

"Ponyboy, you're here." Soda chirped.

"Yeah."

"Oh! Pony this is my brother, Darrel. We all call him Darry though. Darry, this is Ponyboy." Soda introduced, excitedly.

"Nice to meet you." Pony said, offering a timid smile. Darry looked pretty intimidating to him, tall like his had and just as, if not more so, muscled then him.

"Nice to meet you too." Darry drawled out.

While they waited for their mom's to call them for dinner they talked a little to get to know each other better.

The aroma of the dinner wafted into the room and Ponyboy unconsciously licked his lips. What he didn't realize though was that he had been staring at Soda rather intently while he did it and Darry had noticed.

Darry, however, didn't get a chance to say anything about it since they were called to dinner. It went by relatively quickly with there mostly being talk about shopping (their moms) and talk about cars (their dads) and about what movie they were going to see (themselves).

Practically right when dinner ended all they guys showed up. "Let's go." Dally said, coldly. Then saw Mr. and Mrs. Curtis and greeted them nicely. Ponyboy was impressed, from the way he looked and talked Ponyboy didn't think he had a polite bone in his body. He was glad to have been proven wrong.

A quick few introductions (for Pony's parent's sake) later they (even Darry) were off to the movies; leaving their parents to do whatever it is parents do when their kids aren't around.

Ponyboy and Johny mostly stayed to the back of the group, talking about just about anything they could think of.

They had all decided to watch some kind of action movie that had just come out. Getting to their seats Ponyboy was pulled into the seat between Sodapop and Johnny. He "oomphed" softly at the unexpectedness of the action. He looked to Soda who had done the pulling and just got a smile, which he was forced to return because really, his smile was contagious.

Halfway during the movie Ponyboy said he was going to get something to drink. Soda insisted on coming along but Ponyboy assured him he would be fine on his own.

At the counter he got his drink and was walking back to where everyone was but he got stopped by a group of guys he didn't recognize. "Um, hi?" He said uncertainly.  
When he said that one of the guys came from around the group. "Ponyboy?" A familiar voice asked.

_Bob!_ Ponyboy was relieved to find it was someone he knew. "Hey, Bob."

"What are you doing here?" Bob asked with a smile.

Laughing a little at the obvious answer to that question Ponyboy replied anyway. "I came to watch the movie."

"Oh, right." He laughed too. "Are you alone? Why don't you come sit with my friends and me." He offered.

"I'm not alone." Ponyboy started. "I'm here with some friends."

"Friends? You're fast at making friends. I'm not surprised though; you're a good kid, after all." Bob complemented.

Blushing a little at the compliment he stammered a "thank you."

Bob looked like he was going to say something but stopped short. Seeing that he was looking over his should Ponyboy turned to look over his own shoulder. Soda and Darry were heading towards them.

"There you are Pony." Soda said, looking and sounding relieved. "We thought you might have gotten lost or something. What would we have told your parents then?"He scolded lightly. Then went on to fuss about how he could have gotten hurt and checking him just to make sure he wasn't._ Like a mother hen_, Pony thought amused.

"What's going on here?" Darry asked, his voice tight.

_What's up with him?_ "Nothing. We were just talking." Pony replied.

"Right. Let's get back to the guys." Soda said, voice just as tight.

_Scratch that. What's up with both of them?_ "Um, ok." He said slowly. Then he turned to Bob. " I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Bob." Ponyboy said with a small smile.

Bob looked as happy to see Darry and Sodapop as they did when they saw him, which was not at all. He nodded when Pony said he'd see him tomorrow. "We're still on for after school, right? I already talked to the coach and he said he wants to meet you." He said.

"Definitely!" Ponyboy beamed. "See ya!" Was the last thing he managed to say before he was steered away from the group.

"What was that all about?" Ponyboy asked, curiously.

"Nothing." Soda said rather plainly, making Ponyboy worry a bit. He decided to ask about it later.

The movie ended pretty soon after that and they all walked back to the neighborhood together. Once they got to the Curtis house everyone went to their respective homes with a "see you all later."

Darry, Soda, and Ponyboy walked into the Curtis house where their parents were playing cards and basically giving each other their life's story. Hearing the door the four of them looked up. "Oh, you're home." Elaine smiled. "I guess it's time for us to go."

The four stood up and walked towards where the 3 of them were still standing near the door. They bid their "goodbyes" and Elaine, Drake, and Ponyboy were out the door when Ponyboy was stopped by Darry.

"Can I talk to you for a second, Ponyboy?" He asked.

"Yeah, sure." Pony was quick to reply. Turning to his parents he suggested they go on ahead and he will be there in a bit.

Once they were gone Darry looked to Ponyboy and smirked. "I know." He said.

"Know what?" Ponyboy blinked

Darry ducked his head a little and spoke in a low tone. "You like Soda."

Ponyboy stared at him uncertainly. "I like you, too?" He said, confused.

Shaking his head Darry sighed. "I mean. I know that you like like him."

_Like like? Wait, like like is when_... He sat down on the top step of their stoop in shock. "No!" He said a little louder then he intended. He quickly lowered his voice and spoke quickly. "I don't like him like that."

"I saw what you did earlier." Darry continued, as if Pony didn't say anything.

"What I did?"

"You licked your lips." He said. "Not only that but you were staring at him hungrily too."

Unable to put his thoughts into words he quickly shook his head and waved his hands in that way that said you didn't do anything.

"Don't worry I won't tell anyone." Darry promised, with a light chuckle. "Well, goodnight Ponyboy, and good luck." He walked back into the house right after that.

_Wait! I just thought the food smelled delicious!_ Ponyboy wanted to say but his mouth didn't seem to be working, so he was left with his hand out stretched trying to grab his pants to stop him. Unfortunately he was already in the door.

With a groan he stood up and walked to his house. He took a shower, laid in bed, and tried to forget what Darry said.

His words were haunting him. _Ugh. How did it turn out this way?_ Before he fell asleep he resolved to fix this misunderstanding tomorrow.

* * *

And there you have it. The dinner and movie night. Sorry there isn't much description about the gang or the movie but... Anyway, yeah. Hope you enjoyed it :')

**Side Note: **In this story Bob is going to be nicer. I remember Cherry saying something about Bob only being a jerk when he drank... or something like that. Also, Steve is going to be more indifferent towards Ponyboy instead of a jerk.

**Another note: **Also in this story Bob is going to dislike the gang for a different reason, that I may or may not get into, other then being greasers. He'll still like Ponyboy the same, even though he is a greaser ^_^.

**A Special Thanks To: Wilted Violet, TheNightimeSky, rinswan, minato4ever, Tim's Princess, xCupcakiesX, and DarkxNightxStar, White Lion 18, Pisces3, Astiosis, JohnnyIsMyGoldSunset, KyubiKanji, ILovePepsi2.**

Those those that reviewed more tan once you get hugs! *hugs***  
**

I would also like to thank everyone that put me on their favorite author list, who favorited this story and put it on their alert. You also get hugs! *hugs*

Lot's of Love,

Laura


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:** WooHoo! Finally an update (I tried to make it a long one)! It took forever, I know, but I had to juggle a lot of things and the stress was making it so that I couldn't think! Ugh I hate when that happens! Well, 1 story updated, 7 to go! :'D. I hope you enjoy it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders.

**Warning:** Mm. Only that my grammar stinks. Also at some times this may seem like slash, but it's not. It's just a bromance :'D. Oh, and it might be out of character.

_blahblah_-Thoughts

"blahblah"-Talking

* * *

The next morning seemed to go by quickly for Ponyboy and before he knew it, it was time for lunch. Johnny and him walked through the crowded hallway towards where they were going to meet the rest of the gang. Johnny had told him it was where they always met, which didn't surprise him seeing as they all came from different directions.

"I don't think I did so well on the test." Johnny said in response to Ponyboy's question of how the English test went.

It being only Ponyboy's second day the teacher assumed he didn't know the material, which he did, they had covered before he came and told him he didn't have to take it. Hating tests, as all kids do, he was happy to not take it.

"Really?" Pony asked.

"I get nervous taking tests." Johnny sighed.

"Oh, don't worry too much about it. I'm sure you will do better on the next one. We can study together, since I guess I will have to take that one." Ponyboy said, smiling.

"Thanks." Johnny said, returning the smile.

Their little conversation was interrupted by another voice. "Took you long enough." Dally said, his scowl practically heard through his voice.

"The teacher let us out late." Ponyboy said plainly, and they all stood around for a few more minutes.

Tired of just standing around Two-Bit spoke. "Well, let's go!"

"Where are we going?" Pony asked Johnny curiously.

"To the DX." Johnny responded looking at Ponyboy strangely, as if he should have already known that.

"Oh. You guys always go to the DX for lunch?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"So you don't eat here during lunch then." Ponyboy stated.

Johnny thought about that for a moment. "Well, sometimes we stay..." He trailed off unsure how to reply anymore. Ponyboy looked confused after his last sentence and he was starting to feel confused himself.

Steve who had been listening to the little conversation rolled his eyes. "Usually we go to the DX to hang around with Soda, but once in a while we do stay at school." He said.

"Oh." Pony murmured absently.

The rest of the walk was silent. It was a nice chance for Ponyboy to think and get nervous about meeting the track coach. Sure he was a good runner but even so he didn't feel comfortable with first meetings, even teachers made him nervous until he was around them long enough.

When they reached the DX Ponyboy's eyes subconsciously scanned the area for Sodapop. When he found him he saw that he was talking to a really pretty girl. "Who's that?" He accidently asked out loud.

"That's Soda's girlfriend." Two-Bit smiled.

"She's pretty." Pony commented, smiling he continued. "They look good together."

"Like a celebrity couple." Dallas smirked, even Dally had to admit when he met Soda that he was rather handsome and Sandy was a beauty herself.

The rest of them started walking towards Soda and his girlfriend, he forgot to ask her name, but he held back a little. It was one thing to hang around Soda when he was alone; it was quite another thing when he was with someone.

He picked up his pace however when Soda waved for him to come over. Once he was close enough Soda put his arm around his shoulders and introduced him to his girlfriend. "Ponyboy, this is my girlfriend, Sandy. Sandy this is Ponyboy."

"N-nice to m-meet you." Ponyboy said, stumbling over his words a little. He inwardly and outwardly flinched at that.

Sodapop laughed. "He's a shy guy." He said, ruffling Pony's ungreased hair. It was a little strange, his hair not being greased, because it really did move a lot and ended up being a little messy after. He liked it though; it was soft to the touch.

Sandy smiled softly. "It's nice to meet you too, Ponyboy." He turned a little red, since he was around that age where it was still uncomfortable to talk to girls.

Her voice was soft, her eyes looked soft too. Actually, to Ponyboy everything about her seemed to be soft.

"I was just about to go get Sandy something to drink. Do you guys want anything?" He asked.

Drink. For some strange reason that reminded him that he had to meet with his math teacher before class started. Just to talk a little more about what he needed to do so that he could get caught up with the rest of the class. Although he already knew the work that they were on he didn't say anything and just agreed.

"ny. Pony!" He heard Soda say loudly, practically near his ear, causing him to flinch. He looked to him confused. "I was asking if you wanted anything." He repeated.

"Oh. No, I actually have to go now." He said.

"You do?" Ponyboy nodded. "How come?"

"I have to meet with someone before my next class." He replied.

"Oh." Soda hesitated. "Is it Bob?"

Pony shook his head. "With my math teacher."

Soda relaxed at that. "Ok. I'll see you after school then."

"Maybe when I get home." Pony commented.

"Staying after school?"

"Yeah. I'm going to go meet with the track coach." Ponyboy smiled.

"You're thinking of joining the track team?" Dally asked, curiosity in his voice.

"Yeah, I am." Pony nodded. Looking at his watch he saw that lunch was going to end soon and he was still at the DX. "I have to get back to school. I will see you guys there." With a wave he turned quickly and practically crashed into Sandy. To avoid the crash he pulled his foot back and ended up falling on the ground. "Oomph. Sorry." He said as he sat on the ground.

Sandy looked worried but she also looked amused. "Are you alright, Ponyboy?" She asked.

"Yeah, thanks." Pony said, standing up.

"Leaving already?" She asked.

"Yeah, I have something I have to do at school." He told her.

As the two of them talked a little Soda and the rest of the gang watched. "I think Sandy likes him." Steve commented absently.

"Looks like it." Soda agreed. "Oh, he's leaving." He said and waved to him when he looked back towards them. He blinked when he saw Ponyboy running towards the school. "Looks like he will make the track team."

"That's good." Sandy, who came up as he spoke the last part, smiled. "He was just telling me that he hopes to make it. I guess he has a friend that is already on the team."

"A friend on the track team?" Soda mused.

Ponyboy took a small breather when he reached the school, a little tired from the run. Glancing at his watch he was pleased to see that he still had time to talk to his teacher before lunch was over. Walking up the stairs into the school he rushed up the stairs to the classroom his teacher was in and knocked on the open door before stepping in.

The teacher talked to him a little about what he could do to catch up with the rest of the class. Since, it was really only 3 months into the school year he wasn't behind, which he was glad for. Luckily this school and his old school seem to teach at the same peace.

After thanking his teacher for taking the time to talk to him he left the classroom and decided to just wait in front of the school for the other guys. It was pretty boring just sitting there, but there wasn't much else for him to do, since he didn't really know anyone else. _Maybe I can meet them halfway_, he mused. _Better than just sitting here and waiting._

Getting up he didn't even take a step when he heard someone call his name. "Ponyboy!"

Recognizing the voice he turned around with a smile and greeted the person. "Hey, Bob!" He noticed there was another boy with him that looked to be the same age as Bob. He didn't know who he was, but he often saw them together in school. He waved at the boy timidly when he looked towards him.

"Oh, right. I never introduced you guys. Ponyboy, this is my best friend, Randy. Randy, this is my friend, Ponyboy."

"Nice to meet you." Ponyboy smiled a little.

"You too." Randy said, offering a friendly smile.

"Ponyboy is coming with us after school to meet with coach." Bob informed Randy.

"Ah, cool."

"Let's go to the lunchroom." Bob suggested. "It's kind of chilly out."

Now that he mentioned it, Ponyboy was starting to feel the chill that the wind was creating, so he agreed. At that moment the bell rang.

"Oh. Looks like it's time for class." Bob laughed a little.

Smiling, Ponyboy followed the 2 older boys i then they went their separate ways after a "see you after school" (Randy) and "see you in class" (Bob).

Once he was in his class Ponyboy took his seat glad that the guys didn't see him with Bob. For reasons that he was still not told about the guys and Bob seemed to really dislike each other, and he didn't want the guys to get all protective f him. _I wonder what happened between them_. _Maybe I should ask Soda, but he hasn't told me, so maybe he doesn't want me to know?_ _Stop it pony, stop being nosy!_ He scolded himself. _If they want you to know, they'll tell you_.

Johnny walked into the room and took his seat next to Ponyboy. They were only able to talk for a moment though because a minute later the bell rang and everyone was quiet as the teacher droned on about some kind of test that they will be having the day after tomorrow. The class was overall boring as the teacher just went over what the test was going to be on and reviewing for it. For his part, Johnny ended up falling asleep and Ponyboy could feel that he was not far behind. Luckily before either of them could get in trouble for being asleep and practically being asleep the bell ending class rang, so they left with a "try to stay awake next time boys" from the teacher.

"Man that was boring." Ponyboy sighed, stretching.

"You can say that again." Johnny agreed.

Since Johnny's next class was on the way to Pony's they walked together for a bit. Once they reached Johnny's class he turned to Ponyboy. "By the way, Soda wanted me to wish you luck and he hopes you make the team."

"Ah, thanks." Ponyboy smiled, making a mental note to thank Sodapop later. With a wave he walked on towards his class where he met Bob outside the room. They greeted each other and went in together. He was glad that they were friends because it was a little difficult for him to make friends, so he was surprised that he had made friends so quickly.

They sat down and continued to talk when Ponyboy remembered that Randy said he would see him after school and he was curious about it. "Hey, Bob, is Randy on the track team, too?"

"Yeah, he is." He looked confused. "Did I not tell you?"

Ponyboy laughed at his forgetfulness. "No, you didn't."

"I always seem to forget to mention those kinds of things."

Before Ponyboy could tease him a little about it the teacher walked in. Since there was a test today everyone else seemed to be pretty nervous. He had noticed that everyone had their books and notes out, looking over them and trying to memorize as much as they could. _Maybe I should have studied too..._

The teacher started passing the test out and he was starting to get nervous. To his relief it was a multiple choice test, he has always been good at these tests. He got done pretty quickly and was bored after 10 more minutes passed. Feeling the need to go to the restroom he debated whether to just wait or to go. Deciding it was better than just sitting there bored out of his mind he raised his hand and asked to go. The teacher said yes and he went out as quietly as he could.

Yawning, he went to the bathroom quickly and walked out. Wanting to stretch his legs a little more he walked all the way to the end of the hall then turned around and walked back to his class. By the time he got there the teacher was talking. Well, at least it won't be quiet anymore. He liked the quiet but sometimes even he hated it, especially when he didn't want to think.

The class went by quickly after that and Bob and Ponyboy were off the the track field. "I'm a little nervous." Ponyboy admitted as they got closer to the field.

Bob put his arm around Pony and continued to lead to the field. "Don't be. Coach is a real nice guy and so are the others." He assured.

They reached the field and immediately went straight to an older man. "Coach!" Bob greeted. "This is the kid I was telling you about." Proudly pushing Pony in front of him a little.

The coach stared at him a bit. "Got your gym clothes?" The coach asked.

"Yes, sir." Pony replied.

"Go put them on and let's see what you got." He said, smiling.

Agreeing Pony ran to where the locker room was and changed quickly. On his way back he saw Randy standing off to the side with another boy and waved at him when he noticed him. He waved back and continued towards where Bob and the coach were talking.

Upon seeing him the coach laughed. "Normally I would say let's see what you got, but I already saw it when you ran to the locker room. You're one fast runner." He held out his hand and Ponyboy shook it, blinking a little. "We'd be glad to have you on the team." Ponyboy couldn't believe it he was on the team. _That was easier then I thought it would be._

"See? You didn't need to be nervous." Bob laughing, giving him a congratulatory slap on the back.

Pony smiled sheepishly. "Actually, I as so nervous that I unconsciously ran as fast as I could to change." He said, causing Bob to laugh more.

"You're really something Ponyboy." Bob commented."Coach say's that practice is canceled though because his car that he had taken to go get checked today is ready, so he wanted to go check it out to make sure everything is fine."

"Oh, ok." He said and they went to go get changed, meeting up with Randy on the way. Bob offered to give him a ride home, but Pony said he wold walk. Since practice was cancelled he thought it would be a good way to get his body into shape, walking is a form of exercise after all.

"Hey, Pony," Randy started. "Bob and me always go jogging in the mornings; do you want to come with us?"

It has been a long time since he actually ran with someone else, so Pony was happy to agree. "Alright. Let's meet at the park tomorrow morning at around 5, sound good?"

"Sounds great!" He agreed. "See you in the morning." He said, and with one last wave left.

He absently wondered if Soda was still at the DX. He was excited to tell him that he made the team. _If Sandy's there I can tell her too!_ He felt really giddy and almost started jumping around like an idiot.

Running the rest of the way to the DX he was happy to see that both Sodapop and Sandy were there. It looked like they were just about to leave. Giving a burst of energy to his legs to run faster he reached them quickly. "Hi!" He breathed, trying not to pant from the excursion that quick sprint took.

"Hi Ponyboy!" They greeted.

"I thought you wouldn't be home till later." Soda commented.

"Practice was cancelled for today, so everyone went home."

"So then you weren't able to try out?" Sandy asked.

"I managed to try out before it was cancelled." Pony replied.

"And...?" Soda prompted.

Ponyboy smiled widely. "I made the team!" He exclaimed.

"Wow, that's really great, Ponyboy!" Sandy said, giving him a hug.

"I knew you'd make it." Soda said, matter-of-factually.

"Is that why you were pacing and asking "do you think he made it?" every 10 seconds?" Sandy asked cheekily.

"Don't tell him that!" Soda protested. "It's embarrassing."

Ponyboy just laughed at them. He was really happy right now. "Thanks."

Then they all walked home, since Sandy lived near them they went to her house. There they talked some more. Ponyboy was starting to get a little cold. "Soda. I'll go back first." He said.

Sodapop agreed and sent him off with a "see you tomorrow".

On his way home he was pulled into an alley and was surrounded by 3 scary-looking guys and they each had a blade pointing at him._ Uh-oh_. Was the only thing that crossed his mind.

* * *

Muahaha a cliffy! What do you think will happen? :'D... Well, I hope you liked it!I know it was kind of boring (I'm trying to make this fic as realistic as I can), but I really wanted to update this, so I just wrote out what came to my mind ^_^; I know that's not how joining track works (I was in track for 2 years. wheeee :'D) but... Well, y'know. Creative liberty and all that...

**Side Note:** Randy is also going to be nice to Ponyboy in this story :').

**Another Note:** Also, I am debating about whether to keep Sandy in the story or have her leave, like in the book, hm...

**Special Thanks To: Wilted Violet, TheNightimeSky, rinswan, minato4ever, Tim's Princess, xCupcakiesX, and DarkxNightxStar, White Lion 18, Pisces3, Astiosis, JohnnyIsMyGoldSunset, KyubiKanji, ILovePepsi2, minato4ever, and Lilac Thunder, KyubiKanji, MarioandLuigi,  
**

Thanks a lot guys *tighthug*

And to those that reviewed more than once you get hugs! *hugs***  
**

I really do appreciate all the reviews, the faves, the story alerts, the author alerts, and the author faves.

Lots of love,

Laura


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** Whooo! I finally updated this story! I tried to make it a long chapter. So, so, so, sorry that it took so long. I got a new job when I got back from vacation and OMG it has made me so tired that I haven't been able to think of anything to write.

**Also:** I have decided to make Ponyboy and his family's last name: Carson. I would like to thank** JonnyIsMyGoldSunset** for this suggestion!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders.

**Warning:** My grammar stinks. Also at some times this may seem like slash, but it's not. It's just a bromance :'D. Oh, and it might be out of character.

**One More Thing:** Please disregard all the mistakes (I know there must be quite a few) I will be fixing them when I get the chance. Anyway, on with the story! :')

_blahblah_-Thoughts

"blahblah"-Talking

* * *

Ponyboy stayed close to the wall as the three guys pointed their blades at him.

"Got a blade?" The one in the middle asked gruffly.

Unable to find his voice Ponyboy just shook his head, no.

The three of them looked at each other, communicating silently, and with a nod put their blades away.

He let out a sigh of relief, though his relief was short lived as one of them took a swing at him.

Instinctively he ducked down, but another fist got him in the stomach knocking the wind out of him and causing him to double over in pain. He tried to breathe, but only managed to wheeze in a panic to get air into his lungs.

"What's a Soc doin' walkin' 'round here all alone in the middle of the night?" One of them asked as a kick connected with his stomach, making it even more difficult to breathe.

Then all he could feel were fists connecting with whatever part of his body that they hit. Dumbly, all the while, the only thought running through his head was: _what's a soc?_

He covered his head to lessen the blows to his face, but then one of the guys pulled his arms away and another punched him in the face a couple of times.

He was starting to feel numb, which was a welcome relief from all the pain, when he heard a yell through the buzzing in his ears. "Hey!"

Dally and Johnny ran over to the alley where the three greasers were.

They had been on their way to Ponyboy's house to invite him (upon Johnny's insistence) to go see a movie. On their way over they saw Tim and two other guys beating someone up.

They were about to keep on walking when Johnny got a look at the face of the guy.

"Dally!" He yelped. "That's Ponyboy they're beating up!"

"No way." Dally commented. "You're just seein' things."

"No!" Johnny insisted. "Look! You can see his face!" He watched in horror as one of the other two guys landed a kick to his stomach, causing his face to scrunch up in pain.

"Son of a-" Dally swore when he saw the guy's face. It really was Ponyboy. He raced over to the group with Johnny close at his heels.

Johnny stopped when he reached the alley, but Dally kept going and pushed one of them harshly.

"What the hell are ya doin!" Dally scowled.

"Teachin' this soc to stay out of our turf." Tim answered.

"That aint no soc." Dally said, icily. "He's as much a greaser as any of you."

"No way," One of the other two guys said disbelievingly. "look at his clothes."

"His hair's not even greased." The other one said as he pulled it, making him moan in pain.

"Leave him alone." Johnny said, unable to keep quiet anymore.

The three of them turned their gaze to Johnny and he almost shrunk back. Almost.

"Listen guys," Tim started. "this aint no greaser." He spoke slowly, as if he were speaking to children that didn't understand something.

Dally was getting impatient, so he decided to try a different approach; going along with them.

"Alright guys, here's what we do; you guys go on and we'll take care of it from here." When all they did was stare at him he cracked his knuckles. "Got a lot of pent up anger to get out." He smiled dangerously.

The guys laughed and "whooped" as they walked away.

"Idiots." Dally hissed.

"Hey… Hey, Ponyboy, you alright, man?" Johnny asked, sounding afraid.

"Mm." Ponyboy moaned. "My body hurts all over." He whispered.

"With the beating those guys gave you, that's no surprise." Johnny murmured.

"Come on let's get you home." Dally grabbed him and carefully lifted him up.

Pony was a very surprised at how carefully Dally was being with him. He hadn't expected him to be. Once he was lifted up to his feet completely he gasped, and would have doubled over had it not been for Dally holding him up. Sagging against him Ponyboy let out a shuddering breath.

"N-not home." Pony gritted his teeth as a wave of pain washed over him. "Can't let my parents see me like this."

"The lot?" Johnny suggested.

"That'll work." Dally nodded. "I'll take him there, you get Darry and Soda. "Tell 'em to bring the first aid."

With a nod Johnny ran as fast as he could to the Curtis's.

Dally half dragged, half guided Ponyboy to the lot. When they got there he carefully helped him sit down, and then helped him lie down.

"What were you doin' walkin' 'round by yourself, kid?" Dally frowned.

"Was just walking home from Sandy's." Ponyboy said. He winced as pain shot through his body, he frowned, it was annoying that the pain came and went as it pleased. "Didn't think this kind of thing would happen."

At the Dally stared at him strangely. _Didn't think this kind of thing would happen?_ He didn't press it and instead asked, "Were you with Soda?"

Slow nod. "Got cold, so I left first."

"Soda." Dally sighed. He should have known better than to let the kid walk around alone, especially at night.

_Speaking of Soda._ Dally mused, as he watched Johnny, Darry, and Soda running towards them.

As they ran towards where Dally was Soda mused on what brought them to the lot at night.

He had just gotten home and was having a good natured argument with Darry about this and that when the door suddenly burst open.

Shocked, they had both jumped to their feet, prepared to fight if they had to.

They relaxed when they saw that it was just Johnny, but tensed up when they saw how panicked he looked.

"Darry." Johnny panted. "Ponyboy's hurt, need first aid kit, down at the lot." His words were jumbled, but they got the message pretty clearly.

"What happened?" Soda demanded, as Darry grabbed the first aid kit.

Before Johnny could reply Darry came over and we all ran to the lot.

When they were close enough to the lot Soda could see a figure sitting on the ground and another one lying down. Feeling his heart beat quicken, he wasn't sure if it was from the run or fear, he stopped dead in his tracks when they finally reached Dally. He took in a sharp breath at what he saw.

Darry for his part swore both loudly and quietly when he saw Ponyboy lying there all beat up. His lip was split, one of his eyes was starting to swell pretty badly, and his nose was bleeding.

"What happened?" Soda managed to whisper through his shock.

Darry quickly knelt down and started to take things out of the first aid, half listening to Dally explain what happened.

"We were on our way to his house when we saw him getting beat up by Tim and a couple of his pals. They thought he was a soc."

When Ponyboy winced Darry apologized quietly and spoke. "They got ya good, huh?" He commented, lightly, so as not to upset him. If something like this happened to him Darry would sure be upset that it was being mentioned.

Ponyboy tried to crack a smile, but it came out as a grimace due to the pain his split lip was causing him from trying to move it. "'s not so bad." Truthfully he didn't know how bad it was, so all he could do was hope that he wasn't as bad off as he felt.

There was silence for a bit as Darry wiped blood off of Ponyboy's face. Then he poked and prodded in certain places to check for broken bones. Luckily there didn't seem to be any.

"There's something I don't understand."

"What?" Darry asked, lightly touching his face.

"They called me a soc and said they were teaching me to stay out of their turf. What did they mean?"

_Oh._ Darry was surprised, he had expected for Pony to know all about the whole soc/greaser situation. No one told him about it. He had thought that Soda would have talked to him about it, since he had spent a lot of time with him. Then again there had never really been a reason to talk about it, so he must have forgotten to tell him.

"It's… It's complicated." Darry said.

Ponyboy was going to ask more about it, but Darry cut him off. "We'll explain later. For now, let's get you cleaned up so you can go home. Your parents must be worried about you."

"I don't want them to see me like this." Ponyboy's voice wavered.

It was with good reason too. His eye was pretty swollen; his nose was slightly swollen as well. Bruises were already starting to show on his skin, made even more prominent due to his pale skin.

"They're going to see you eventually." Darry said softly. "These bruises aren't going to go away anytime soon, ya know; they're going to be there for a while."

"Right." Ponyboy's voice cracked.

Feeling bad for the poor kid, well even more than he already felt, he offered him some solace. "We don't have to tell them."

"Really?" He asked hopefully. He really didn't want his parents to worry about him whenever he went out.

"Yeah. We'll think of something to tell them."

Then Pony looked around for a moment and curiosity lit his eyes before being clouded by pain. "Where's Soda?" He managed to moan through the pain.

"I'm right here, buddy." Soda said kneeling down beside him, although what he really wanted to do was be as far away from his badly hurt friend as possible. "How're you feeling?"

"Like I got hit by a bus."

Soda smoothed Ponyboy's hair back, offering as much comfort as he could with as minimal contact as he could manage. "You'll feel a little better soon." He promised when he saw Darry take out a bottle of aspirin.

"Here, Ponyboy, take this." Darry hesitated. "Can you sit up a little?"

"I don't think I can on my own." Ponyboy admitted. "Can you help me Soda?"

"Sure." Soda said softly. Sliding his arm under Ponyboy's neck he carefully started pushing him up by the shoulders so that he was slightly sitting up. Fear of having hurt Ponyboy after he gasped a little almost caused him to let the poor boy fall back onto the floor, but he readjusted his hold quickly.

Putting the pills to Ponyboy's mouth Darry tossed them in when his mouth opened. "We'll let the pills take away some of the pain and then we can head on home."

There was only silence as they were all lost in their own thoughts about the whole situation and they were pulled away from those thoughts by Ponyboy. "I think I'm ready to go home."

"Alright." All of them stood and reached down to help him before stopping short. Straightening up they all looked at each other awkwardly, wondering who was going to get him up.

"I got him." Soda said. Kneeling down he grabbed Ponyboy's left arm and draped it across his shoulders, using his left hand to keep it in place, to help him sit up a little so he could slide his right arm across Pony's back, so that he had a firm hold on him. Then he slowly, so as not to cause him too much pain, started to stand, lifting Ponyboy up a little bit at a time.

"You ok?" He asked.

"Yeah. I'm ok." Ponyboy answered after a moment.

The walk was a slow one that took more than five minute, although it felt a lot longer to all of them, especially Ponyboy. "Are we there yet?"

"Yeah, just a little further." Darry assured.

"I don't think I can walk anymore." He hissed, and as if to prove his point his legs gave out on him, making him fall to his knees before Soda could get a firmer grip on him.

"I think it will be better if we carried you." Darry said after his shock wore off.

Not wanting to be carried around like some kid Ponyboy was going to protest, but Darry cut him off. "You're straining your body too much, Ponyboy, if you keep this up you'll probably have to go to the hospital."

Grimacing at the word hospital Ponyboy agreed to be carried. He had never liked hospitals; not only that, but he didn't want his parents to have to pay for one more thing just because of him.

Darry was the one that carried him even though Soda repeated suggested he could do it. "What are we gonna tell my parents, Darry?"

"Tell them you got into a motorcycle accident." Dally said helpfully.

"I don't have a motorcycle, Dally."

"Just tell them you wanted to try to ride one and you had an accident that had you thrown off."

"Is it believable?" Darry asked. "I don't think you can get a black eye from falling off a motorcycle."

"Good point." Dally commented. After thinking about it he snapped his fingers as an idea came to him. "He got the black eye after trying to walk his way home. Tell 'em he crashed into a tree. I've seen people walk into trees and end up with black eyes."

"It'll have to do." Darry said reluctantly, since their homes were already in view. He saw all the lights were off in both of the houses. "They must all be asleep."

Upon reaching the Carson home they saw a note on the door. It read:

Ponyboy,

Went out to dinner with Marie and Darrel. There is some food in

The refrigerator that you can heat up for dinner.

Love, Mom and Dad

PS: Don't wait up.

"There must be a similar note at our house." Darry mused, after having read the letter out loud. They had been gone for about twenty minutes, their parents must have come home sometime after they left, and seeing no one home invited the Carson's out to eat.

Ponyboy let out a sigh of relief glad that they wouldn't be seeing him for the time being. They had stopped checking up on him while he slept after he turned thirteen, so he was sure that he didn't have to worry about it till tomorrow morning.

"Wanna stay at our house tonight, Ponyboy?" Darry asked. Before he even got an answer he was already walking to their home.

Soda wondered if he was hungry at all. He didn't think that he had eaten since earlier in the day. "Are you hungry?"

"Not anymore." Ponyboy smiled a little. "I'm actually really sleepy. I think I will sleep now."

"You can sleep in Soda's room tonight. Do you mind?"

"Nope." Pony replied quickly, he was used to sharing beds with his friends when he spent the night at their homes.. He wanted to make sure it was ok with Soda too, so he looked toward him. "Is it ok with you Soda?"

"It's fine with me."

Carrying him into the room Darry placed him on the bed and covered him with a blanket when he shivered.

"Let's let him rest now, Soda." He led him out of the room and out into the living room; Johnny and Dally were gone now.

"Are you hungry?" Darry asked as he walked into the kitchen to find something to eat. When he didn't get a response he looked back into the living room and saw Soda standing still standing in front of the closed door, just staring at the floor blankly. Walking over to him he lightly touched his shoulder, causing him to jump in surprise. "Whoa, what's the matter, Soda?"

There was no response, so he decided on a different approach. "You ok, Pepsi-cola?"

Looking at his brother wide-eyed now Soda spoke in a regretful tone. "It's all my fault, Dar."

"What is?"

Running a shaky hand through his hair he looked away. "If I hadn't let him walk home by himself he wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"This isn't your fault." Darry said firmly. "He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Understand?"

Sodapop wasn't convinced, but he knew that his brother would never tell him that it was his fault, so he just nodded.

Darry knew that Soda didn't believe him and that upset him, so when all he did was nod at his reassurance that it wasn't his fault it wasn't enough. "No, don't nod, say you understand."

"I understand." Soda said, dully.

"What?" Darry pressured. "What do you understand?" All he got was a blank stare, which frustrated him. He made clearer what he wanted him to say. "Tell me you understand that this isn't your fault."

There was reluctance, and then at last he said it. "I understand that this isn't my fault." It was more of a whisper than anything.

"And it isn't." Darry repeated. He was going to say it as many times as he had to to make Soda understand. "This isn't something that you could have known would happen."

Feeling drained Soda nodded. "I'm really tired all of a sudden." A yawn forced its way passed his lips. "I think I'll go to bed."

"Alright, get some rest, little buddy." He murmured.

With a "good night" Soda walked into his room and looked at Ponyboy for a moment before changing into his pajamas. Slipping into bed he stared at Ponyboy. Reaching his hand up he lightly touched one of the bruises that had formed on his cheek. "Sorry." He whispered.

When Ponyboy's good eye fluttered open Soda's heart skipped a beat in surprise. "Why are you apologizing?" He asked sleepily.

"Did I wake you? Sorry." He pulled his hand back quickly.

Ponyboy shook his head a little. "I was only half asleep." He murmured. "Why did you apologize earlier?"

Soda didn't want to tell him what he was apologizing for. He had a feeling he would react similarly to how Darry had. "Just, sorry."

Ponyboy frowned. "Don't apologize." He continued when it looked like he was going to apologize again. "You didn't do anything wrong, so there is no reason for you to apologize."

Soda started to say something when he noticed that Ponyboy was already starting to fall back asleep. Sighing he closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep. After ten minutes of being unable to stop his thoughts from running wild he realized that he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night.

* * *

And there you have it! I was originally going to have him be saved by someone, but I was kind of stressed when I started writing this, lol, so I just took it out on poor Ponyboy. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and again, please disregard any mistakes for the time being. And I know it feels rushed, and I honestly couldn't tell you why because I wasn't trying to rush it at all.

**Note:** I am still debating about whether to keep Sandy in the story or have her leave, like in the book, hm...

**Another Note:** What do you guys think about **romance**? **Yes**? **No**?

**Special Thanks To: Wilted Violet, TheNightimeSky, rinswan, minato4ever, Tim's Princess, xCupcakiesX, and DarkxNightxStar, White Lion 18, Pisces3, Astiosis, JohnnyIsMyGoldSunset, KyubiKanji, ILovePepsi2, minato4ever, Lilac Thunder, KyubiKanji, MarioandLuigi, xCallMeLogiex, Lilian'Chic, Deanaholic1, SodapopGirl17, and Guest.  
**

Thanks a lot guys *tighthug*

And to those that reviewed more than once you get hugs! *hugs***  
**

I really do appreciate all the reviews, the faves, the story alerts, the author alerts, and the author faves.

Lots of love,

Laura


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